Platyfish

[Sam1071]

Hi!
At Christmas, I got a new fish tank and all was going well until we unfortunately lost two of our platyfish in a couple of days. All of our water tests were fine and our local aquarium store advised that the issue was down to the KH levels. We levelled this out and also treated the tank with an anti-bacteria and anti-parasite treatment. All seemed fine and therefore we got some new platyfish fish and unfortunately 10 days later one of our new platyfish died. The fish was being bullied and this was put down as the reason, again all water tests were fine including KH. We now seem to have a poorly platyfish (also a new one) and I am worried the same thing is going to happen, but no idea what is causing this to happen!
Has anyone experienced anything similar?

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

Hello it's hard to know how to help without seeing photos of the tank and the fish unfortunately and it would be really helpful if you could post your test results too please.

Often the pet shops don't know their butt from their elbow and give terrible advice, it's not unknown for them to take advantage of the innocent ignorance of the new fishkeeper either to sell more products.

 

[Colin_T]

BASIC FIRST AID FOR FISH
Test the water for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH. Post results (in numbers) here.

Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week or until the problem is identified. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen in the water.

Post clear pictures and or video of the fish so we can check them for diseases.
You can upload videos to YouTube, then copy & paste the link here.

 

[Byron]

Welcome to TFF.

There are a great many possible reasons here, and the only way members will be able to assist in finding the answer is with information and data. Always give the test results of any tests you can carry out--ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH. It is also good to know another test, the GH of the water. And the KH, since you did mention this parameter. KH impacts pH and the latter can be far more affecting on fish.

 

[Sam1071]

Thank you all. Unfortunately two of my platyfish died this morning and there are no signs of any disease (my friend has kept fish for years and has checked them over). My water levels have been constant for the past few weeks at 0 nitrate, 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia, and 8 PH.

 

[Naughts]

store advised that the issue was down to the KH levels. We levelled this out

If this means you added substances to change KH/pH this could be the problem?
Stable parameters are generally more important than trying to keep a specific KH/pH. The natural composition of the water counteracts the additives causing rebound yo-yoing parameters which adversely effects the fish.

 

[10 Tanks]

Hello. Platys are a hardy fish and can be kept in most water conditions. The key isn't a particular water chemistry. This is difficult to establish and even more difficult to maintain. They need a stable water chemistry. When you bring them home from the fish store they need to be introduced to your water conditions very slowly. The process should take at least one hour floating the fish bag and adding a little tank water several times. I keep several species of Platys in larger tanks of at least 55 gallons. The water chemistry stays more constant in larger tanks. The fish need large, weekly water changes to keep dissolved waste material out of the water and a diet of flakes, freeze dried and sometimes a little frozen food. Keep up with your water changes and don't feed too much and your fish will be healthy.

10 Tanks (Now 11)

 

[GaryE]

I know from talking to fish store people that platys, like guppies, often arrive in poor shape. The farms treat them as cheap, bulk products, and we are the ones who get the consequences. Having platys die in the first 3 weeks after purchase isn't uncommon. It shouldn't be so, but it is.

You'll be told it's your water.

One of my ex students (I taught High School) was working in a local large store a few years ago, and he told me the death rate in newly arrived platys made them unprofitable except as draws into the store. They are wonderful fish if they're healthy. His boss ordered from a new supplier every 2 weeks to try to get healthy ones, and they would get an occasional good batch of platys or guppies.

The business end of our hobby is shooting itself in the foot.

Hello. Platys are a hardy fish and can be kept in most water conditions. The key isn't a particular water chemistry. This is difficult to establish and even more difficult to maintain. They need a stable water chemistry. When you bring them home from the fish store they need to be introduced to your water conditions very slowly. The process should take at least one hour floating the fish bag and adding a little tank water several times. I keep several species of Platys in larger tanks of at least 55 gallons. The water chemistry stays more constant in larger tanks. The fish need large, weekly water changes to keep dissolved waste material out of the water and a diet of flakes, freeze dried and sometimes a little frozen food. Keep up with your water changes and don't feed too much and your fish will be healthy.

10 Tanks (Now 11)

If you have very soft water, your platys will die, but softwater isn't common from most taps. I do the opposite of the advice above (but I don't keep platys). I make sure no pet shop water gets into my tanks. When temperatures are equal, I pour the bag off through a net and get the fish into their QT tank as quickly as I can. You have to get them out of the tiny amount of water in the bag, because the ammonia builds up fast once the bag is opened. I worked in the business, and regularly dealt with fish that had traveled for days. That was the most efficient system for keeping fish alive, and I have done it at home for 25 years with no acclimation problems. But if you put 2 aquarists in a room, you'll have 3 opinions on how to do things...


I don't keep them anymore because I have very soft water from my tap here, but platys and mollies are among my favourite fish groups.

 

[Byron]

More information on this aquarim and fish might help members diagnose. Tanksize, number (species and numbers) of fish, water change schedule. Any additives being added to the water for any reason.

Several fish seem to have recently died, so do not acquire any more of any species until this is sorted out.

 

[Sam1071]

Thank you. Tank is 72 litres and there are currently 3 platyfish, 2 Dalmatian mollies, 7 neon tetras, 4 julil catfish and 4 amano shrimp.
Water change has been once a week and we are currently adding Seacham Stability and Seacham Prime every water change and Seacham Flourish every 4 days for our plants.

 

[Essjay]

You have both hard water (platies and mollies) and soft water (neons and cories) fish in your tank, so one or other group will not be happy long term. But this is not the cause of the fish deaths so quickly.

For the long term, can I suggest you look on your water company's website for hardness. You need a number and the unit of measurement - there are half a dozen different units; fishkeeping uses just two of them but UK water companies often use another one. If you can't find it, tell us the name of the water company and we'll see if we can find the page. Once you know your hardness, you'll be able to choose future fish which suit your water.

4 julil catfish

It is very rare to find julii cories in shops. Most shops sell Corydoras trilineatus labelled as Corydoras julii. The care is the same for both, so it doesn't really matter which they are

 

[Byron]

Thank you. Tank is 72 litres and there are currently 3 platyfish, 2 Dalmatian mollies, 7 neon tetras, 4 julil catfish and 4 amano shrimp.
Water change has been once a week and we are currently adding Seacham Stability and Seacham Prime every water change and Seacham Flourish every 4 days for our plants.

General advice. And not suggesting any one of this is the cause of the deaths. But added stress does not help fish.

Stop using so many chemicals. Stability has no purpose here, it is not the correct nitrifying bacteria species anyway. Flourish assuming this is the Flourish Comprehensive Supplement is an excellent plant fertilizer, but should not be needed more tha once a week, and no more than the recommended dose or less. Use it 3 days after a water change using Prime bcause the latter prevents plants from assimilating most nutrients. I will never use Prime, the API Tap Water Conditioner is safer and does not have this issue. But for the moment the Prime is OK, but be very careful not to overdose.

That is a lot of fish for a 70 liter (20 gallon) tank, but w can leave that for the present. What are the parameters of your source/tap water? GH and pH especially. [Note, I see @Essjay just posted asking this too...great minds...

 

[10 Tanks]

I know from talking to fish store people that platys, like guppies, often arrive in poor shape. The farms treat them as cheap, bulk products, and we are the ones who get the consequences. Having platys die in the first 3 weeks after purchase isn't uncommon. It shouldn't be so, but it is.

You'll be told it's your water.

One of my ex students (I taught High School) was working in a local large store a few years ago, and he told me the death rate in newly arrived platys made them unprofitable except as draws into the store. They are wonderful fish if they're healthy. His boss ordered from a new supplier every 2 weeks to try to get healthy ones, and they would get an occasional good batch of platys or guppies.

The business end of our hobby is shooting itself in the foot.

If you have very soft water, your platys will die, but softwater isn't common from most taps. I do the opposite of the advice above (but I don't keep platys). I make sure no pet shop water gets into my tanks. When temperatures are equal, I pour the bag off through a net and get the fish into their QT tank as quickly as I can. You have to get them out of the tiny amount of water in the bag, because the ammonia builds up fast once the bag is opened. I worked in the business, and regularly dealt with fish that had traveled for days. That was the most efficient system for keeping fish alive, and I have done it at home for 25 years with no acclimation problems. But if you put 2 aquarists in a room, you'll have 3 opinions on how to do things...


I don't keep them anymore because I have very soft water from my tap here, but platys and mollies are among my favourite fish groups.

Hello. Most store fish are kept in a near soft water environment. With the exception of a few areas on the west coast and a few places in the deep south and the Maine area, the water is fine for fish keeping. The people in those areas simply need to take a little more time to properly acclimate the fish to the tank water. Take a little more time to get the fish used to their new home and they'll be fine. The problems come up when the fish tank water isn't properly taken care of with the appropriate water change routine.

Things like magnesium sulfate and calcium chloride are often sold along with commercially formulated hardeners for aquarists who want to be able to tweak the water hardness even further.

10 Tanks (Now 11)

 

[emeraldking]

Stop using so many chemicals.

I totally agree...
It may seem good to have so many chemicals available for each problem in a tank but don't overdo... Problems will become worse instead of less...

 

[Naughts]

Thank you. Tank is 72 litres and there are currently 3 platyfish, 2 Dalmatian mollies, 7 neon tetras, 4 julil catfish and 4 amano shrimp.
Water change has been once a week and we are currently adding Seacham Stability and Seacham Prime every water change and Seacham Flourish every 4 days for our plants.

That's good then, no additives that would change parameters.
There is nothing here to explain the poorly platies, perhaps just a bad batch like Gary said? Maybe you need to get your fish elsewhere in future.